A video of Hollywood A-listers singing a Will.i.am song about him, a Shepard Fairey painting with “HOPE” beaming in bold letters beneath his face, constant buzz on social media — the Obama cultural phenomenon four years ago lit up the youth vote like no campaign before. So as the president gears up for a reelection run that’s going to struggle with independents and moderates, his team is looking to revive the cool appeal — and reignite the young voters who’ve strayed.

Last Tuesday’s pre-Fashion Week fundraiser was an early strike at recapturing the magic. Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour and actress Scarlett Johansson cohosted the event at Theory, a trendy clothing store in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District, hawking pro-Obama T-shirts, scarves and tote bags designed by Marc Jacobs, Tory Burch and Beyoncé Knowles with a runway show for a well-dressed crowd.

Johansson and Wintour both fundraised and campaigned for Obama four years ago, and Jacobs, Burch and Knowles all designed gear sold as part of that year’s Runway to Change. This year’s Runway to Win, Johansson told reporters at the event, is geared to “reintroduce that kind of cool factor to the reelection.”

There’s a lot of ground to make up.

“A little of the sex appeal is gone,” explained Heather Smith, president of Rock the Vote, which helps young voters engage in the political process. “The butterflies in the stomach aren’t there.”

Big-name singers Jack Johnson and India.Arie have performed at fundraisers this year, and the Foo Fighters are set to headline one on Feb. 15 in Los Angeles. The playlist for Obama campaign events includes songs by hip bands Arcade Fire and Wilco, along with classically cool Bruce Springsteen and U2.

Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons, who designed a T-shirt for Runway to Win, told POLITICO he is “inspired that we have a president that appreciates the artistic community and has asked us to join his campaign, celebrating all of our talents. Culture has always led the way for the great changes in this country and once again artists are using their expression to raise awareness about what we believe is important.”

Fashion, indie rock and social media are part of a conscious engagement effort by the president’s reelection team.

“People have been the foundation of the campaign since 2008, and we want to get them involved through whatever they’re into,” said Obama 2012 spokeswoman Katie Hogan.

The president has gotten involved in the effort himself. In January, he wrote a Happy Birthday letter to Zooey Deschanel, the “It Girl” actress and indie rocker, and recorded a minute-long video that ends with him walking off while listening to the “Golden Girls” theme song on his iPod for hipster icon Betty White’s 90th.

Keeping up with the pulse, the campaign joined Spotify to share its 2012 playlist with supporters. That’s the latest in an aggressive social media presence that includes Twitter accounts for the president and first lady, a Facebook presence, a YouTube channel, a Flickr page and a Google Plus profile. The White House also has tried to up his credibility with accounts on the microblogging site Tumblr and photo sharing platform Instagram.

The Obama 2008 campaign logo, a trendy graphic design ‘O’ rising over a red-and-white striped field, is back again this year with updates. It’s been modernized with matte colors replacing the glossy and more varied shades of red, white and blue. On BarackObama.com, the 2008 color palette and design has become more sophisticated, with bright blue replaced by navy blue, baby blue and white.

The changes, said Obama 2008 design director of new media Scott Thomas, are meant to allude to the cool while introducing the notion that Obama is now “more distinguished and more experienced” than he was four years ago.

Obama’s been trying to manage the expectations himself.

“I know that it’s not going to be exactly the same as when I was young and vibrant and new,” he said at a fundraiser last year. “And there was — posters everywhere, hope. The logo was really fresh. And let’s face it, it was cool to support me back then. At cocktail parties, you could sort of say, ‘Yeah, this Obama guy, you haven’t heard of him? Let me tell you about him.’”

Fred Davis, a Hollywood-based Republican advertising consultant who made the 2008 John McCain ad “Celebrity” which drew a distinction between Obama’s cultural impact and his readiness to lead, that the president rode in on “a wave of extreme coolness” but that dissipated after “making promises he couldn’t keep.”

“Nobody hates Obama. It’s not that they don’t think he’s personally cool — hey, he plays basketball — he’s let them down, and people are unhappy.”

But, supporters point out, Obama doesn’t have to be what he was four years ago.

“I don’t think we’ve even begun to remind people of the many great things he’s done,” hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons said. “I am not too worried whether or not our president is cool.”

The president’s not giving up, though.

Taking the stage at a fundraiser at the Apollo Theater last month, Obama thanked Al Green for being there by launching into a few notes of his “Let’s Stay Together.”

“I,” he sang, holding out the note with a Clintonesque bite of his lower lip, “I’m so in love with you.”

The audience roared, and the video clip went viral. And demonstrating the hold he still has over pop culture, online sales of the song increased five-fold the week after. He was even invited to appear on “American Idol.”

The moment hit the core of Obama’s challenge with cool this year: His smooth style thrilled supporters and drew in people not normally tuned into politics — with a song released 40 years ago.

After his “Let’s Stay Together” performance at the Apollo, Obama was given a recording of the song with lyrics adapted to the 2012 campaign. But it wasn’t recorded by Beyoncé, Jay-Z or Lady Gaga. Instead, it was a chorus of House Democrats, who recorded the track at their annual retreat.

“Can you think of a metaphor any more telling?” said Stephen Duncombe, a New York University professor who writes about political art. “It’s not rock stars, it’s not rap stars, it’s not a viral video of people singing. It’s party insiders.”